A scientific technical calculation for carrying out a simulation and an image generation calculation according to computer graphics (this kind of processing is called a rendering calculation) require a very long time to execute these processing. It is not rare that it takes a few days to execute a rendering calculation processing. Therefore, based on an estimated progress status, an operator needs to visit a machine room to confirm the progress status of the calculation processing in front of a computer console screen, on holidays, only for the purpose of this confirmation.
Further, in the case of executing a processing based on a distributed processing by a plurality of computers, it is necessary to confirm the progress status of each computer individually in front of each console screen.
In order to reduce the load of this confirmation work, there have been devised methods of using an electronic mail to receive a notification of an end of a started rendering calculation.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open Publication No. 6-214903 discloses a method of automatically notifying a distinction between a normal end and an abnormal end of a result of executing a job to a designated destination by electronic mail, or outputting a result of the execution to a designated output unit, upon finishing the execution of the job by a computer system.
Further, JP-A No. 2000-20197 discloses a method of displaying on a user terminal a current processing status or how much more time is necessary to execute the processing according to a busy status of a server side, based on a request from a user terminal to the server unit which carries out an information search processing via the Internet.
Usually, in the case of carrying out a rendering calculation, basic information on a shape of an object and a position of a light source as well as various parameters are set up in order to give a feel of the material in forming an image. Based on these parameters, it becomes possible to give various feels of the material to an image that is to be formed by rendering calculation.
However, as an ideal result of an output of a prepared image becomes different depending on an image that the user has, it is impossible to fix firm proper parameters in advance. Therefore, in order to obtain an ideal image at one time, the user leaves the basic information on the rendering as it is, and changes only parameters and repeats executing the rendering processing many times. Then, by comparing the results of the execution, the user gradually finds proper parameter set values.
Because of this work style, even when a rendering calculation ends simply on the computer as a normal end, the long work time taken for this processing becomes useless if the parameter set values have a problem and this gives an execution result having a different image from what the user has expected.
It is necessary for the user to catch as quickly as possible whether the current processing can produce a desirable result that has been obtained in the past or not in comparison with the past processing that produced this satisfactory result, during the execution of the processing, rather than to know whether the whole processing has ended or not.
Further, when it is anticipated that it is not possible to obtain a desirable execution result, it is necessary to analyze which parameter correction brings about the unsatisfactory result. When a user is away from a terminal that executes the rendering processing, the user must return to the execution terminal to analyze this problem, and the user cannot investigate the problem to improve the processing during the moving time. Therefore, although there is no parameter set value fixed for the rendering processing, it is necessary to find immediately the reference information showing a parameter set value that gives the worst result.
However, according to the conventional techniques, only an execution result is notified to a user at the point of time when a processing (job) executed by a computer system has ended. Further, according to the convention techniques, only an estimated time required for ending the job is notified to the user.